


Perceptions and Truths

by Katharos



Category: Cardcaptor Sakura
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-24
Updated: 2009-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-05 04:14:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/37698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katharos/pseuds/Katharos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clow and Cerberus, with banter and mutual evilness.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Perceptions and Truths

Most of the time, the prevalent opinion among the children resident at Reed Manor was that the corridor that ran along the west wing, connecting the school room and guest rooms to the main house, was far too long. Unless Joseph had been practicing his burgeoning ice affinity on the vast expanse of floor, in which case it was just right.

To Anna Reed, at the moment, it was far, far too short. Even dragging her feet as much as she could didn't seem to be having any noticeable affect on the distance.

She'd managed to avoid running into any of them so far, apart from the brief bobbed curtsey and muttered welcome when they'd arrived. She and the rest of the children had been tucked away at the back of the Entrance Hall, a placement that they, for once, hadn't protested, so she had managed to avoid getting a good look at them. She'd heard enough family legends to have a good idea what this strange relative was like however, and her older cousins had taken great pleasure in luridly describing the imposing guardians that had flanked him to their younger counterparts.

So far Anna had been able to avoid being in close quarters with any of them. To evade one of them, the one most of Anna's stupid older cousins were sighing over, all you had to do was avoid going into the library (hardly a chore as far as Anna was concerned.) The remaining pair, which included Clow Reed himself, had steered clear of all family gatherings. This suited Anna and her friends just fine. Unfortunately, grownups weren't as sensible.

She didn't _want_ to see him – just being in the same house as all that power was giving her a headache - but Aunt Maritha had commented, thin lipped, that she didn't care _what_ sort of people he was used to residing with, but while he was staying under the Reed roof he would behave in a _civilised_ manner. Including, joining the rest of the family for tea. Anna scowled sourly. And because Tom and Jane had managed to duck behind the curtains, _she'd_ been the one sent to fetch the uber-powerful scary sorcerer.

Maybe this was punishment for putting that slug in Lady Rothberg's shoe…? Anna wondered as her traitorous feet finally brought her to the Guest's door.

"Murderer!"

Anna froze, her eyes wide. She stared at the door in front of her. Had that voice…?

"Let me GO!"

Anna jumped and hugged herself nervously, and eyed the long, empty stretch of corridor.

"Torturer! Psychopath!"

And then another voice, speaking with strained patience. "If you held still this wouldn't hurt as –"

"Pervert!"

There was exasperation in the second voice now. "Really, Cerberus, I think that's –"

There was a series of loud crashes and then the door slammed open, tumbling two large figures into a pile on the corridor floor.

Anna squeaked and took a hurried step back. Two sets of surprised eyes stared up at her. On the bottom of the pile was a face whose portrait she had passed everyday of her life, only somehow both more serene (even with the exasperated expression he was currently wearing) and far more intimidating in person. And bigger.

Sprawled all over him however…

Anna's mouth fell open as she took in the sight. Then she turned and ran.

Clow and Cerberus stared after the little girl for a long moment after she had disappeared around the corner.

"That was your fault."

"I?" Clow shoved at Cerberus' side until the Guardian grudgingly clambered off him. "How could you say it was my fault, Cerberus?"

Cerberus sniffed and stuck his nose up in the air. "Obviously she's heard all those horror stories your family loves to tell about you, and she's scared stiff of you."

You'd have to know his sun guardian very well, Clow thought with fond sadness, to notice the way his wings were drooping.

"It's possible," he agreed mildly. "There are always stories and lies, misconceptions as much as active malice. But because they don't know the truth for themselves, people will accept them and believe. And fear. He sighed. " And it is only if they are able and willing that they can learn the truth for themselves."

Cerberus tossed his head pointedly. "Well, _your_ stories are– " his own yelp of pain cut him off. "There's one in my _ruff_," he whined disbelievingly.

"Ah!" Clow exclaimed. "I knew I'd missed one." The pliers he'd been using materialised in one hand and he pushed Cerberus' head firmly down to the ground with the other. "Hold still. I don't want to hurt you more then necessary."

"You're the most powerful magician in the world," Cerberus whined, allowing himself to be restrained as Clow poked through the ruff of fur that had concealed the last spike. "Couldn't you have used a spell or something to get them all out at once?"

"I could have," Clow conceded. "However, I have never developed a spell to identify and extract fragments of one magical creation from another."

Cerberus gave him a frankly disbelieving look.

"Painlessly," Clow clarified.

"Oh." Cerberus slumped. "A serious misordering of priorities," he muttered balefully.

Clow chuckled as he worked. "Yet even you must admit, Cerberus, that the sequence of events that resulted in your, ah, _affliction_ is unlikely to occur twice."

The body beneath him froze. Then, as Cerberus was unable to risk moving his head, he rolled one eye around to look up at Clow beseechingly. "Don't tell Yue."

"Don't tell Yue what?" Clow asked innocently. "You mean don't tell Yue that you managed to get yourself shot full of spines by a," he coughed slightly, "Hedgehog spirit?"

"Yes," Cerberus muttered. "Don't tell Yue _that_."

"My child," Clow promised serenely. "I wouldn't dream of it."

Cerberus shot upright, knocking Clow to the floor. "Clow!" he yelled. He gave his master a dark glare. "Promising you won't 'dream' of it doesn't stop you from actually _doing_ it!"

Clow sighed regretfully as he sat back up and went back to poking at the spike. "You're getting better at this."

"Of course," Cerberus said smugly, giving his wings a good stretch before settling back down. "I'm not Yue you know. I _know_ that you're deceitful, devious, dishonest, untrustworthy,"

Clow sighed. "Alright, alright…"

"Conceited, arrogant, big-headed, smug,"

"How long are you going to continue?"

"Superior, self-satisfied, manipulative, scheming,"

"Cerberus, I think that's enough!"

"_And_" Cerberus finished triumphantly, "You've got a bad personality!"

Clow looked at him. "Did you memorise the entire thesaurus?"

"Only the important bits," Cerberus said contentedly. He prodded Clow with one wing-tip. "Don't think I hadn't noticed you haven't actually promised yet."

"Very well," Clow sighed. "I promise that I will not tell Yue that you were assaulted by a hedgehog spirit."

Cerberus gave him an unimpressed look. "There's about a million ways to get around that, you know." He sighed and stretched luxuriously. "But if you do decide to try it, just remember that we're in a house full of your relatives…" he trailed off suggestively.

It would be too much to expect Clow to pale, but the ways his eyes widened very slightly was almost as good. "You wouldn't."

"You created me," Cerberus pointed out cheerfully. "If I have the urge to blackmail you by threatening to inform your relatives of the various scandals you've so far managed to keep from them, while you're currently _trapped_ here and unable to get away from their interrogations, it's your own fault 'cause you made me this way."

Clow shook his head. "I don't know why you try to avoid using logic so often. You're good at it."

Cerberus gave a bone-cracking yawn. "Well usually it's boring. 'Specially those logic games you and Yue play. Are you done yet?"

"Nearly," Clow assured him. "In fact, I think that –ah!" he exclaimed triumphantly as the long, dark-brown spike slid free.

"_Finally_," Cerberus muttered, giving himself a full body shake and sitting up. "You were just enjoying torturing me, weren't you?"

Clow smiled innocently and held magic hedgehog's spike out. "Would you like to keep it as a souvenir?"

His creation gave him a filthy look, but thankfully Clow's blameless ears were spared whatever scathing commentary he had prepared, as Cerberus was interrupted before he could even begin.

"See, I told you!" a young voice hissed triumphantly, in what the owner obviously thought was a discreet whisper.

Clow and Cerberus exchanged looks, and turned as one to look down the corridor.

There were squeaks and the rustle of stiff petticoats as several young female heads ducked hurriedly back around the corner.

Clow and Cerberus exchanged further looks, and then Clow turned towards the hiding girls. "It's alright to come out," he called, making his voice gentle. "We don't bite."

"At least I don't," Cerberus muttered.

Slowly the little girls edged out from around the corner, clustering together nervously and, Clow noticed, sending many shy, darting little glances towards his Guardian.

Clow smiled and stepped away.

Swift looks were exchanged within the gaggle of little girls, and then one edged her way to the front, an expression of nervous excitement on her face. "Um, well, you see, we were – I mean Anna saw," she was twisting her fingers together. "That is – I – we - You're beautiful," she blurted out, and blushed bright red.

"Wha-?" Cerberus' mouth fell open.

A younger girl stepped forward shyly, her eyes adoring. "May we pet you?"

"Uh?" Cerberus shot a nervous glance at Clow. Clow folded his arms over his chest and offered him an impenetrable smile. The glance turned into a glare, then Cerberus looked nervously back at the girls. "Um, if you want too…"

It was all the invitation they needed. The little girls flocked around his Guardian like bees did when Cerberus had attempted to make honey-cakes, and before Clow had managed to deploy Bubbles.

"It's rude to pet someone when you don't know their name," one of them said disapprovingly. It didn't stop her from scratching at Cerberus' ears. "What's your name?"

"Mmmm'berus," Cerberus mumbled, eyes half-closed and almost incoherent from the petting.

"Your name's Berry?" One of the girls asked, delighted.

Cereberus's eyes shot open. "What?!"

The smallest girl giggled and flung her arms around his neck. "That's so cute!"

"He's not cute!" One of the others said indignantly. "He's a magnificent, ferocious beast!"

"He's _gorgeous_," another sighed, scratching at his ear.

Cerberus managed to simultaneously melt and puff up like a peacock.

Clow cleared his throat. "Should I leave you all alone?" He was ignored. Clow smiled.

As Clow walked away, he heard one young voice comment sadly that Cerberus was too big to pick up and cuddle properly.

Too big for a little girl to cuddle properly, hmm? He mused. Well, I'll have to fix that then, won't I?

And then because Cerberus was too busy being adored to call him on it, Clow Reed indulged himself in a good, long, evil laugh.


End file.
